Philosophy

Theology, Philosophy, and Music staff are involved in teaching and research in the areas of ethics, philosophy, religious studies, theology and music. The academic study of religion in DCU is pursued through the complementary disciplines of Theology and Religious Studies, offering students an understanding of the historical and contemporary significance of religious faith and religions. We welcome students from a variety of backgrounds, religious and secular.

Philosophy is the systematic investigation of some of the most fundamental issues in our lives – like the nature of reality, the extent and reliability of knowledge, the ways in which we should live our lives (individually and socially), or the status and significance of art and beauty. Studying philosophy necessarily involves engaging with the history of the topic, and much of the School’s focus is on some of the key thinkers and themes to have emerged in 2,500 years of Western thought. The School is also concerned with the direct application of philosophical principles, via a focus on specific ethical issues. Overall, this combination of theoretical rigour and practical engagement provides students with a rich and enabling experience of the shape and significance of Western thought.

Terry Eagleton warned against the ‘death of universities as centres of critique'1. The role of academia, he argues, should not be to service the status quo, but to ‘challenge it in the name of justice, tradition, imagination, human welfare, the free play of the mind or alternative visions of the future.’ The disciplines of Theology, Religious Studies, and Philosophy have a pivotal role to play here as central to these disciplines is the ‘critical reflection on human values and principles’ that Eagleton lauds as being central to everything that goes on in universities.

1. Terry Eagleton, ‘The Death of Universities’ , The Guardian, 17 December 2012.